BBC axes show about £6m local hero over online currency ‘scam’
A BBC documentary about a multimillionaire cryptocurrency founder was pulled off the air last night over claims that he was running a scam.
Concerns were raised after an online BBC article told how ‘successful’ trader Hanad Hassan, 20, had managed to turn an initial £37 investment into nearly £6million within a year.
The glowing write-up described how the university dropout wanted to ‘use his wealth to help people’ – and had donated £200,000 to good causes in his home town of Birmingham.
But within hours, it emerged that the ‘charity-focused’ cryptocurrency set up by Mr Hassan, who drives a £30,000 Mercedes, had in fact been discontinued in October.
A further search of social media revealed investors had been making fraud accusations for months, with one claiming: ‘[We] all lost our f ****** money because of your scam.’ The BBC yesterday had to take the embarrassing step of removing the article from its website and said it would axe the programme, due to air on BBC1 in the Midlands at 7.30pm last night.
It is understood it had filmed the documentary, We Are England: Birmingham’s Self-Made Crypto-Millionaire, in September and edited it before the currency collapsed.
A source at the corporation said the BBC was ‘investigating’ and ‘taking it very seriously’. Another senior BBC insider described the incident as ‘exasperating’. The original article told how Mr Hassan was born in Somalia and moved to Birmingham aged 14 with his family before starting to trade cryptocurrency early last year.
While the piece highlighted the risks of such trading, it claimed Mr Hassan, who has a reported net worth of £5.9million, had so far ‘only known the upside’.
It said Mr Hassan had allowed himself a few luxuries, including a city centre apartment, and had set up a charity-focused cryptocurrency called Orfano in April.
The idea was for 3 per cent of money invested to go to good causes, such as food banks. Huge sums were raised and it gained thousands of followers. Orfano even got the backing of boxer Amir Khan’s charity and Grammy-winning singer Akon.
Overall, £200,000 was donated to charity, according to the BBC.
Yesterday it emerged the cryptocurrency had relaunched as OrfanoX on October 4 – promising investors it was ‘dedicated to transparency’ and that a charity called the Orfano Foundation would be set up.
Days later all updates on its Instagram and Twitter accounts stopped – and after another fortnight both announced they had pulled the plug. Investors were told via the encrypted messaging app Telegram that ‘things haven’t gone the way we had planned’. Online forums have been awash with angry investors since, and it has been claimed the founders ‘ran off’ with their money.
A Twitter account believed to be Mr Hassan’s yesterday dismissed claims of a scam. Asked if Mr Hassan had gained financially, the account said: ‘No, I myself didn’t make any money out of it… the relaunch was to try and bring some hype back to the charity and be able to donate more, the holders still had the investments and then sold their investment as liquidity was still there.’
‘Ran off with their money’
KNOCK us down with a feather if the BBC doesn’t pour cold water on the news that Covid restrictions are ending.
For an insight into the Corporation’s agenda, note the top three headlines on Radio 4’s today programme yesterday.
Brexit is failing, says a usually ignored Commons committee…a little-known Labour donor (who once funded the tories) whines the PM is useless…the eU (which appeases Russia to guarantee gas supplies) is handling the Ukraine crisis marvellously.
Why does the state broadcaster spin up such sorry excuses for stories?
Because it is the flagship of the Metropolitan bien pensant, which loathes Boris, the tories and Brexit. Any opportunity to traduce the Government is seized with relish.
If the BBC were a private enterprise, there could be no complaint. But it’s not. Auntie is cushioned by the licence fee. Yet it long ago ditched any impartiality.
the Corporation pompously boasts that it is ‘for everyone’. excepting, that is, Conservatives, Leave voters and anyone who doesn’t want to trash the country’s culture and history.
What a strange way to persuade ministers (and an increasingly unconvinced public) that the licence fee should be renewed.